OCC-26-178 AES Ohio Rate of Return Expert

The Office of the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel (OCC) is seeking a Rate of Return Expert to provide technical assistance in determining the appropriate rate of return, capital structure, and related issues for the AES Ohio Company. The selected expert will analyze the impact of significant data center load growth on AES Ohio's investments and expenses, ensuring that no allocation of investments or costs associated with data center load growth is made to non-data center consumers. The expert will also evaluate how AES Ohio and PUCO Staff are addressing data center investment and cost issues in this case. Key responsibilities include: • Analyzing the impact of data center load growth on AES Ohio's investments and expenses • Evaluating how AES Ohio and PUCO Staff are addressing data center investment and cost issues • Ensuring that all investments and costs associated with data center load growth are paid for by the data centers • Providing technical assistance in determining the appropriate rate of return, capital structure, and related issues for AES Ohio